Novartis publishes kidney cancer data

Novartis has announced that new therapy may provide a treatment option for patients with advanced cancer of the kidneys.

Interim study findings indicated that investigational drug RAD001 (everolimus) significantly extended the time without tumor growth from 1.9 to four months.

The risk of cancer progression was also reduced by 70 per cent.

Dr Peter Harper, consultant medical oncologist at Guy and St Thomas’, commented: “These findings provide important information on the efficacy of RAD001.”

“I am encouraged by these results and of the potential of RAD001 to address an unmet medical need for this population of very ill patients,” he added.

The study will be presented at the 44th annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), which is due to take place later this month.

In recent days, the firm announced that the ASCO meeting will feature an “unprecedented” amount of research carried out by the company.